As Georgia State university students, you believe passionately that what Coke is doing is wrong, which in your mind is making unjust profits by doing business in a country that treats blacks horribly. You do not have a stake in the company as a shareholder like one group of activists who are pushing for the adoption of the Sullivan Principles.
You also believe that the Sullivan Principles are not enough. As 1984 Nobel Prize Winner, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, has said: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”
You are inspired by recent protests by fellow students, including Columbia University students who last year participated in a 3-week blockade of one of the campus buildings, locking themselves inside in protest. More than 1000 students have been arrested at Berkeley for sit ins last year, and at your own university, Georgia State, students voted overwhelmingly (70%) in favor of a referendum in favor of divestment from corporations doing business in South Africa. You are here to tell the Coca-Cola board that students are disappointed in Coke and that you expect better of the company. Some of your fellow students were arrested recently for protesting outside the IBM annual shareholders meeting, which also took place here in Atlanta, and you are willing to go to jail as well for your beliefs to show solidarity with blacks in South Africa.
For more on what other anti-apartheid activists are currently doing to use as evidence in your debates, check out the following primary document:
Apartheid is morally wrong and the companies (like Coke) who do business in South Africa are supporting the racist policies of the Afrikaaner government by extension.
The only way to change the policies of the apartheid government is through disinvestment, whereby companies doing business in South Africa pull out. This is the only way the Afrikaaner government will pay attention and the only thing it cares about.
The only way to get companies to disinvest is by divesting from those companies and protesting them – boycotting companies who do business in South Africa (like Coke) and others is the way to bring about change.
World opinion is on your side. Many universities and church groups and even local governments have sold off stocks of companies doing business in South Africa. Just last year, the Unite Church of Christ voted to divest all of the church's money from businesses operating in South Africa, amounting to over $500,000,000. The US Congress is going to act soon as well.
After the Sharpeville Massacre in 1960, South Africa was faced with a huge backlash from the rest of the world for their response to the protestors, which led to a decline in their country’s economic growth that hurt them, so they will pay attention to what global markets do.
Coke is profiting from South African business, therefore it is turning a blind eye to the system of apartheid for profit and should be boycotted until it changes its policies, like its competitor Pepsi did two years ago.
Key Quote from Desmond Tutu, who in 1979 was a Bishop in the Anglican Church and the General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches.
When asked whether he supported the Sullivan Principles, he said he did not, as they were only "shifting the furniture around the room, instead of changing the furniture." He continued, saying "I find it rather disgraceful that Denmark is buying South African coal and increasing a dependence on South Africa."
When asked whether disinvesting from South Africa wouldn't cause more suffering for blacks, he argued "yes, but it would be suffering with a purpose. We would not be doing what is happening now, where blacks are suffering and it seems to be a suffering that is going on and on and on."
How you "win" the simulation:
For your group, winning means getting a resolution adopted by the board that does all of the following:
Gets Coca-Cola to condemn the apartheid regime
Gets Coca-Cola to sell all of its production and bottling plants in the country to black investors
Gets Coca-Cola to stop selling its products in South Africa, even through subsidiaries
Gets Coca-Cola to provide a severance package and new job training to its former black employees that will help them transition to finding new work after being laid off by the company
You should prepare a written resolution for the board to adopt and a written justification for why they should adopt it, which your group members will take turn reading at the meeting.
Here's an example for how to word a resolution... keep the parts in bold and change the rest of the wording:
Whereas, We consider that recreation is a necessary part of a child's education; and
Whereas, There is no public ground in this village where our school children can play; therefore be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of this meeting that ample play grounds should be immediately provided for our school children.
Resolved, That a committee of five be appointed by the chair to present these resolutions to the village authorities and to urge upon them prompt action in the matter.
You also believe that the Sullivan Principles are not enough. As 1984 Nobel Prize Winner, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, has said: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”
You are inspired by recent protests by fellow students, including Columbia University students who last year participated in a 3-week blockade of one of the campus buildings, locking themselves inside in protest. More than 1000 students have been arrested at Berkeley for sit ins last year, and at your own university, Georgia State, students voted overwhelmingly (70%) in favor of a referendum in favor of divestment from corporations doing business in South Africa. You are here to tell the Coca-Cola board that students are disappointed in Coke and that you expect better of the company. Some of your fellow students were arrested recently for protesting outside the IBM annual shareholders meeting, which also took place here in Atlanta, and you are willing to go to jail as well for your beliefs to show solidarity with blacks in South Africa.
For more on what other anti-apartheid activists are currently doing to use as evidence in your debates, check out the following primary document:
Key Quote from Desmond Tutu, who in 1979 was a Bishop in the Anglican Church and the General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches.
When asked whether he supported the Sullivan Principles, he said he did not, as they were only "shifting the furniture around the room, instead of changing the furniture." He continued, saying "I find it rather disgraceful that Denmark is buying South African coal and increasing a dependence on South Africa."
When asked whether disinvesting from South Africa wouldn't cause more suffering for blacks, he argued "yes, but it would be suffering with a purpose. We would not be doing what is happening now, where blacks are suffering and it seems to be a suffering that is going on and on and on."
How you "win" the simulation:
For your group, winning means getting a resolution adopted by the board that does all of the following:
You should prepare a written resolution for the board to adopt and a written justification for why they should adopt it, which your group members will take turn reading at the meeting.
Here's an example for how to word a resolution... keep the parts in bold and change the rest of the wording: